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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES ∙ National Institutes of Health

NIDCD Fact Sheet | Hearing and Balance

Noise-Induced Hearing Loss

What is noise-induced hearing loss? What causes NIHL?

Every day, we experience sound in our environment, NIHL can be caused by a one-time exposure to an intense
such as the sounds from television and radio, household “impulse” sound, such as an explosion, or by continuous
appliances, and traffic. Normally, these sounds are at safe exposure to loud sounds over an extended period of time,
levels that don’t damage our hearing. But sounds can be such as noise generated in a woodworking shop.
harmful when they are too loud, even for a brief time, or
when they are both loud and long-lasting. These sounds Recreational activities that can put you at risk for NIHL
can damage sensitive structures in the inner ear and cause include target shooting and hunting, snowmobile riding,
noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL). listening to MP3 players at high volume through earbuds
or headphones, playing in a band, and attending loud
NIHL can be immediate or it can take a long time to be concerts. Harmful noises at home may come from
noticeable. It can be temporary or permanent, and it can sources including lawnmowers, leaf blowers, and
affect one ear or both ears. Even if you can’t tell that you are woodworking tools.
damaging your hearing, you could have trouble hearing
in the future, such as not being able to understand other Sound is measured in units called decibels. Sounds of less
people when they talk, especially on the phone or in a than 75 decibels, even after long exposure, are unlikely to
noisy room. Regardless of how it might affect you, one cause hearing loss. However, long or repeated exposure
thing is certain: noise-induced hearing loss is something to sounds at or above 85 decibels can cause hearing loss.
you can prevent. The louder the sound, the shorter the amount of time it
takes for NIHL to happen.
Who is affected by NIHL? Here are the average decibel ratings of some familiar
Exposure to harmful noise can happen at any age. People sounds:
of all ages, including children, teens, young adults, and } The humming of a refrigerator 45 decibels
older people, can develop NIHL. Based on a 2011–2012
} Normal conversation 60 decibels
CDC study involving hearing tests and interviews with
participants, at least 10 million adults (6 percent) in the } Noise from heavy city traffic 85 decibels
U.S. under age 70—and perhaps as many as 40 million } Motorcyles 95 decibels
adults (24 percent)—have features of their hearing
} An MP3 player at maximum volume 105 decibels
test that suggest hearing loss in one or both ears from
exposure to loud noise. Researchers have also estimated } Siren 120 decibels
that as many as 17 percent of teens (ages 12 to 19) } Firecrackers and guns 150 decibels
have features of their hearing test suggestive of NIHL
in one or both ears, based on data from 2005–2006.
For more information, see Pediatrics at http://pediatrics.
aappublications.org/content/127/1/e39.long.

NIDCD...Improving the lives of people with communication disorders

 Your distance from the source of the sound and the
length of time you are exposed to the sound are also
important factors in protecting your hearing. A good rule
of thumb is to avoid noises that are too loud, too close, or
last too long.
How can noise damage our hearing?
Parts of the inner ear
Credit: NIH Medical Arts
To understand how loud noises can damage our hearing,
we have to understand how we hear. Hearing depends
on a series of events that change sound waves in the air
into electrical signals. Our auditory nerve then carries these
signals to the brain through a complex series of steps.
1. Sound waves enter the outer ear and travel through
a narrow passageway called the ear canal, which
leads to the eardrum.
2. The eardrum vibrates from the incoming sound
waves and sends these vibrations to three tiny
bones in the middle ear. These bones are called the
malleus, incus, and stapes.
3. The bones in the middle ear couple the sound
vibrations from the air to fluid vibrations in the
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cochlea of the inner ear, which is shaped like a snail
and filled with fluid. An elastic partition runs from
the beginning to the end of the cochlea, splitting it
into an upper and lower part. This partition is called
the basilar membrane because it serves as the base,
or ground floor, on which key hearing structures sit.
4. Once the vibrations cause the fluid inside the
cochlea to ripple, a traveling wave forms along the
basilar membrane. Hair cells—sensory cells sitting on
top of the basilar membrane—ride the wave.
5. As the hair cells move up and down, microscopic
hair-like projections (known as stereocilia) that perch
on top of the hair cells bump against an overlying
structure and bend. Bending causes pore-like
channels, which are at the tips of the stereocilia, to
open up. When that happens, chemicals rush into
the cell, creating an electrical signal.
6. The auditory nerve carries this electrical signal to
the brain, which translates it into a sound that we
recognize and understand.
Stereocilia perch atop sensory hair cells in the inner ear.
Credit: Yoshiyuki Kawashima
Most NIHL is caused by the damage and eventual death
of these hair cells. Unlike bird and amphibian hair cells,
human hair cells don’t grow back. They are gone
for good.
What are the effects and signs
of NIHL?
When you are exposed to loud noise over a long period of
time, you may slowly start to lose your hearing. Because
the damage from noise exposure is usually gradual, you
might not notice it, or you might ignore the signs of
hearing loss until they become more pronounced. Over
time, sounds may become distorted or muffled, and you
might find it difficult to understand other people when
they talk or have to turn up the volume on the television.
The damage from NIHL, combined with aging, can lead
to hearing loss severe enough that you need hearing
aids to magnify the sounds around you to help you hear,
communicate, and participate more fully in daily activities.
NIHL can also be caused by extremely loud bursts of
sound, such as gunshots or explosions, which can rupture
the eardrum or damage the bones in the middle ear. This
kind of NIHL can be immediate and permanent.
Loud noise exposure can also cause tinnitus—a ringing,
buzzing, or roaring in the ears or head. Tinnitus may
subside over time, but can sometimes continue constantly
or occasionally throughout a person’s life. Hearing loss
and tinnitus can occur in one or both ears.
Sometimes exposure to impulse or continuous loud noise
causes a temporary hearing loss that disappears 16 to
48 hours later. Recent research suggests, however, that
although the loss of hearing seems to disappear, there
may be residual long-term damage to your hearing.
Can NIHL be prevented?
NIHL is the only type of hearing loss that is completely
preventable. If you understand the hazards of noise and
how to practice good hearing health, you can protect
your hearing for life. Here’s how:
} Know which noises can cause damage (those at or
above 85 decibels).
} Wear earplugs or other protective devices when involved
in a loud activity (activity-specific earplugs and earmuffs
are available at hardware and sporting goods stores).
} If you can’t reduce the noise or protect yourself from it,
move away from it.
} Be alert to hazardous noises in the environment.
} Protect the ears of children who are too young to
protect their own.
} Make family, friends, and colleagues aware of the
hazards of noise.
} Have your hearing tested if you think you might have
hearing loss.
What research is being done on NIHL?
The National Institute on Deafness and Other
Communication Disorders (NIDCD) supports research
on the causes, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of
hearing loss. NIDCD-supported researchers have helped
to identify some of the many genes important for hair-cell
development and function and are using this knowledge
to explore new treatments for hearing loss.
Researchers are also looking at the protective properties
of supporting cells in the inner ear, which appear to be
capable of lessening the damage to sensory hair cells
upon exposure to noise.
The NIDCD sponsors It’s a Noisy Planet. Protect Their
Hearing®, a national public education campaign to
increase awareness among parents of preteens about
the causes and prevention of NIHL. Armed with this
information, parents, teachers, school nurses, and other
adults can encourage children to adopt healthy
hearing habits.
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Where can I find additional
information about noise-induced
hearing loss?
The NIDCD maintains a directory of organizations that
provide information on the normal and disordered
processes of hearing, balance, taste, smell, voice,
speech, and language. Visit the NIDCD website at
http://www.nidcd.nih.gov to search the directory.
Use the following keywords to help you find
organizations that can answer questions and provide
printed or electronic information on NIHL:
} Noise-induced hearing loss
} Hard of hearing
} Tinnitus
More NIDCD fact sheets on Hearing and Balance:
} Age-Related Hearing Loss
} How Loud Is Too Loud? How Long Is Too Long?
} Otosclerosis
} Ten Ways to Recognize Hearing Loss
} Tinnitus
Visit the NIDCD website at http://www.nidcd.nih.gov
to read, print, or download fact sheets.
For more information, contact us at:
NIDCD Information Clearinghouse
1 Communication Avenue
Bethesda, MD 20892-3456
Toll-free Voice: (800) 241-1044
Toll-free TTY: (800) 241-1055
Email: nidcdinfo@nidcd.nih.gov
http://www.nidcd.nih.gov
Follow the NIDCD on Twitter at @NIDCD
The NIDCD supports and conducts research and
research training on the normal and disordered
processes of hearing, balance, taste, smell, voice,
speech, and language and provides health information,
based upon scientific discovery, to the public.
Noise-Induced Hearing Loss
NIH Pub. No. 99-4233
March 2014
Reprinted July 2016
NIH...Turning Discovery Into Health®